UK government declares ‘Scooby Doo’ healthiest cartoon. Huh?

British researchers spent 200 hours studying popular children’s television shows and noting which characters are the most active.

In the end they concluded that a talking Great Dane and a team of young detectives are the most active bunch and declared “Scooby Doo” the healthiest cartoon on TV, according to the “Daily Mail.”

Researchers found that the Scooby gang spends more time running and walking during a single episode than characters in any other show. Makes sense because the “Scooby Doo” characters are always scurrying away from three-headed monsters and ghosts.

The British government calls “Scooby Doo” the healthiest show on TV even though two of it’s main characters are known for wolfing down snacks and sandwiches.

But wait a minute…What about the Scooby Snacks and giant sandwiches Scooby and Shaggy wolf down in every episode? These cowardly, gluttonous clowns are certainly lovable but healthy? Maybe the researchers focused on Fred, Velma, and Daphne.

What’s the motivation behind this study? The British government is on a mission to promote healthy lifestyles among kids and this survey was part of a Chage4Life campaign. The idea is to direct kids to shows where the characters are active and engage in sports. Characters in “Shaun the Sheep,” “Peppa Pig,” “Bob the Builder,” “Tom and Jerry,” and “Dora the Explorer” were in the top-10 “most active” list.

But will watching an animated cat and mouse run circles around each other on TV make kids more active? I don’t think so. Rather it might trick children into think they’re being active and only encourage them to sit on their bums in front of the tube all day. It seems British researchers should put their efforts into figuring out how to get kids to turn off the cartoons and go outside.